"Cowardice asks the question...is it safe? Expediency asks the question...is it politic? Vanity asks the question...is it popular? But conscience asks the question...is it right? And there comes a time when one must take a position that is neither safe, nor politic, nor popular but one must take it because it is right." ~Dr. Martin Luther King

Thursday, 21 August 2014

The problem with the perception of retailers that have come and gone is looking at them in an isolated way.

Evelyn lists Aurora Home Hardware, True Value, Canadian Tire as examples of "local" businesses that have learned to survive. But, what she fails to see or acknowledge, all of those examples are franchises of much larger "corporate" operations. The local retailer is able to leverage the buying power of the corporate entity. As a tradeoff, they sacrifice their ability to set prices and policies. At some point, a corporate manager reviews the viability of an outlet and if it is not profitable, they will cut it loose in a heartbeat.

Looking at the Aurora downtown there are very few independant retail operations. They tend to come and go with regularity as the owners try new opportunities.

As far as the suggestion that councillors should have retail experience, that is not a realistic expectation. If a councillor has common sense and is willing to listen to the electorate (including the small business operation), they can be much more effective. But, when you have councillors that claim that they know better than anyone else, you have a recipe for disaster.Posted by Anonymous to Our Town and Its Business at 21 August 2014 08:46********************Home Hardware IGA,IDA are all Associations of independent business operators.An advantage of being a Councillor is the opportunity to learn something about the lives of people And business in the community. The late Mayor John West was partner with the Aurora group that established Home Hardware in Oak Ridges. John was generous in sharing his experienceThe owners of Aurora Home Hardware and customers of many years would be surprised to learn that they are not thought of as owners and responsible for the success of their business with the same
friendly faces to greet customers looking for advice.

The same can be said I'm sure of Mac Fleming's which became much more than a paint and wallpaper store over the years and took over the store abutting. Caruso's.continuing business over a hundred years is a testament to commitment.No, I have not spoken to any of the owners. I think it can be assumed if a store opens it's doors every day, it is still in business Along with all the other signs of course.
I do not pretend to know all it takes to operate a retail store,or publish a newspaper, manage a police department ,operate a hospital, provide recreation programs ,operating a theatre or any of the myriad
activities that contribute to people's lives in a community like ours.

But I can tell you this .......a Mayor or Councillor who doesn't learn something of lives of people they serve , after four years in office, is a person who hasn't much interest in anyone but himself.

Elected office is nothing else but privilege and status to that person.

Like Michael Ignatieff ....until the night before the election....when he knew he had lost and understood why.

12 comments:

Anonymous
said...

I think we should try to get councillors who we actually see going about their business in town. There are a few candidates that have suddenly " discovered " their love for Aurora and seem to spend much of their time bustling about eating at various establishments. I know from experience that those who fail to get elected will cease their interest immediately. We will see them seldom.

15:31 It might be due to whoever makes the booking having access to that club. Membership in golf clubs is expensive & there would be an uproar if the town had to pay. The lengthy tussle over paying for a couple of drinks shows how things can get blown out of whack.

15:31- You are absolutely correct. The Town doesn't have any loyalty to businesses in Aurora. There's a small company that does some servicing work for the Town and its facilities. Nothing huge but some jobs here and there. The company is located in Richmond Hill. We are a company that's located in Aurora for almost 20yrs and have tried numerous times to ask for the opportunity to quote on some of this work. We've never received a call or email. Except for requesting some sort of "partnership" in one of their "events".

This post and the two that follow are really all about the same thing.

We regularly see pictures in the Auroran of the Mayor or a Councillor being photographed at a ribbon-cutting to welcome a new small business to town.

I don't know how much time the officials spend with the new proud owners, possibly not a great deal and more than likely not enough to become conversant with the business.

It would be interesting to see photographs in the local paper of an elected official helping the now financially diminished owner hang brown paper over the windows to cover the going out of business signs.

What is the point of all of this? I don't think there is one other than life and business are full of risks and we shouldn't have to deal with politicians' whims and screwball ideas.

19:00 I am not providing anyone with an excuse here because I agree that the communications with your group have been lousy. Maybe the town has made a mistake. But members of council are simply not in the loop. Any decisions are made by staff who for the most part live elsewhere. Is this wrong ? Should it change ? Of course.